“Harry Emerson Fosdick observed that there are two kinds of hypocrisy: when we try to appear better than we are, and when we let ourselves appear worse than we are. We have been speaking of the kind of hypocrisy where people pretend to be more or better than they are. Too often, however, we see members of the Church who in their hearts know and believe, but through fear of public opinion fail to stand up and be counted. This kind of hypocrisy is as serious as the other” (“Woe unto You … Hypocrites,” Improvement Era, Dec. 1970, 33).
In the September 1842 issue of the Times and Seasons, which was published while the Prophet Joseph Smith was serving as the editor, an explanation was given concerning the fate of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist:
“When Herod’s edict went forth to destroy the young children, John was about six months older than Jesus, and came under this hellish edict, and Zacharias caused his mother to take him into the mountains, where he was raised on locusts and wild honey. When his father refused to disclose his hiding place, and being the officiating high priest at the Temple that year, [he] was slain by Herod’s order, between the porch and the altar, as Jesus said” (“Persecution of the Prophets,” Times and Seasons, Sept. 1, 1842, 902).
“More than once [the Savior] has said that He would gather us to Him as a hen would gather her chickens under her wings. He says that we must choose to come to Him. …
“One way to do that is to gather with the Saints in His Church. Go to your meetings, even when it seems hard. If you are determined, He will help you find the strength to do it” (“In the Strength of the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2004, 18).